MOSCOW — Young, middle-aged, old or elderly, fans of this game — or any activity — recall the moment they fell in love with a sport, a hobby, their passion.

They remember where they were when fill-in-the-blank scored or when their team filled them with elatedness — no matter the size of the accomplishment.

We remember how we were introduced to a sport that, while only a game, has dominated our lives far more than we’ll admit.

They’re memories we’re not just fond of, but long to create more of — with new friends, our own kids or grandkids, our communities.

In the wake of FIFA’s decision on Wednesday to award the 2026 World Cup to the joint-bid of Canada, the United States and Mexico, I can’t help but recall memories that run counter to what we’ve heard from naysayers.

Back then, most young American soccer players didn’t know they could cheer for their countrymen. We were inspired by our own national team, not that of our ancestry.

The 1994 World Cup planted a seed that grew the U.S. men’s team from utterly insignificant into heroes. It birthed a generation of American soccer fans, players and coaches.

The Canadian Soccer Association believes 2026 will do more than alter the entire complexion of the men’s game in Canada. It says it will change lives.

When Canada hosted the 2002 FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship, it kick-started women’s football in our country. The 2015 Women’s World Cup unified Canadians in the same way the 2010 Winter Olympics did.

“It was the greatest women’s competition in history,” Canadian bid director Peter Montopoli told Postmedia prior to arriving in Moscow. “It created so many legacies for women’s football.”

An impassioned Montopoli later added: “We can recreate everything we’ve captured on the women’s side with our men.”

They’re statements and messages and memories that get lost when government bodies play political games. When they downplay the significance of hosting this event.

“I was privileged enough to be part of both (World Cups) in Germany and South Africa,” Montopoli continued. “(Germany) was one of the best competitions anyone could ever attend, a country celebrating the sport of football.

“It was the same in South Africa, but what we were doing was a little different,” he continued. “We were saying to a continent, ‘We can do this.’ These are powerful statements and messages.

“They never leave the people in those countries. When I still speak to some of my friends from South Africa, they’re emotional, impactful. That’s what these competitions are all about.”

It’s the message United 2026 bid committee members sold as they traversed the globe and secured votes ahead of Wednesday’s decisive vote.

They met with 80% of FIFA member associations in advance of the FIFA Congress, and claimed 134 of 203 votes to defeat a Moroccan bid that’s considered exceedingly high risk. The “United” bid, meanwhile, argued its eagerness to co-host provided a blueprint as FIFA gets set to expand the men’s World Cup to 48 teams following Qatar 2022.

When FIFA bid evaluators revealed their final tallies earlier this month they underscored how far out in front the “United” bid was.

The committee scored the U.S., Canada and Mexico 402 out of 500. Citing fears over transport, hotels and venues, FIFA bid evaluators gave Morocco a score of just 275.

“We’ve been preaching the ‘certainty’ and ‘opportunity’ of our bid,” Montopoli told Postmedia. “We’re very confident in our abilities to organize competitions.”

The “United” bid promises $11 billion in 2026 World Cup profits, more than any tournament in history. It was the safe bid, the bid that deserved to win.

It’s the bid B.C. will regret pulling out of at the eleventh hour after refurbishing Vancouver’s BC Place for events just like this.

With the Canadian Premier League coming online next year and Major League Soccer continuing its steady growth, there hasn’t been a better time to be a soccer player in Canada.

In the coming years, Canadian teens won’t just be angling to appear in a Stanley Cup. They’ll set their sights on wearing the maple leaf when Canada’s men return to the World Cup for the first time in 40 years.

TRUMP ‘NOT HELPING’

As one high-ranking “United” bid official put it, “the guy in the White House isn’t helping us.”

He was referring to U.S. president Donald Trump’s inflammatory tweet back in April that appeared to threaten FIFA member associations if they voted against Canada’s joint bid with the U.S. and Mexico.

The U.S. has put together a STRONG bid w/ Canada & Mexico for the 2026 World Cup. It would be a shame if countries that we always support were to lobby against the U.S. bid. Why should we be supporting these countries when they don’t support us (including at the United Nations)?

“The U.S. has put together a STRONG bid w/ Canada & Mexico for the 2026 World Cup,” Trump wrote. “It would be a shame if countries that we always support were to lobby against the U.S. bid. Why should we be supporting these countries when they don’t support us (including at the United Nations)?”

Geopolitics played a role during this World Cup bidding process.

Morocco, the only other country to bid against the U.S., Canada and Mexico, used Trump’s words to counter the “United” bid — including when the U.S. president allegedly referred to some African countries as “s—holes”.

The mudslinging didn’t stop there.

The “United” bid also contended with Trump’s “travel ban.”

The Moroccan bid also made light of mass shooting incidents in the U.S., implying America isn’t safe.

“United” bid officials laughed off those assertions before Wednesday’s vote.

CPL OFFERS CONGRATS

News of Canada securing a portion of the 2026 World Cup should provide a huge boost to the Canadian Premier League ahead of its inaugural season.

The CPL — Canada’s own first division — will kick off in eight to 10 Canadian communities in April 2019.

“Having the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada will transform the way that Canadians perceive the global game and change the way the world sees Canada,” CPL commissioner David Clanachan said in a statement.

“Congratulations to the United Bid on their commitment and special recognition to our partners at Canada Soccer for their leadership in making Canada a focal point of the bid. The Canadian Premier League and our clubs will be celebrating this decision with all Canadians coast to coast. We look forward to having the 2026 FIFA World Cup played in Canadian stadiums, and we are even more excited at the possibility of having CPL athletes playing on the world’s biggest stage on home soil.”

To date, the CPL has officially unveiled clubs in Halifax, York Region, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Calgary. Clubs in Hamilton, Ottawa and B.C. are expected to follow before 2019, with room for multiple additions in 2020.

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